Dow Jones index update depletes energy sector

The 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average is updating its components to better reflect the changing US economy.

Salesforce.com, a cloud-based customer relationship-management software company, will replace Exxon Mobil, a major oil company and the Dow's oldest component.

Drug-maker Amgen will replace Pfizer, also a pharmaceutical company. Honeywell International, an industrial and software conglomerate, will replace Raytheon Technologies, a defense contractor.

The changes take effect Monday.

Charles Dow, co-founder of Dow Jones & Co, publisher of The Wall Street Journal, created the Dow Jones Industrial Average in 1896 with 12 industrial stocks. The index now includes a range of industries, including healthcare, financial services, technology and telecommunications.

The S&P 500 tracks 505 companies and the Nasdaq Composite tracks about 2,500 stocks. The Dow weights its stocks by price rather than market capitalization.

S&P Dow Jones Indices said Apple's 4-for-1 stock split, which would reduce the index's tech-sector weighting, "prompted" the changes.

"The announced changes help offset that reduction," S&P Dow Jones said in a statement. "They also help diversify the index by removing overlap between companies of similar scope and adding new types of businesses that better reflect the American economy."

Apple's stock split won't change its valuation, now at about $2 trillion.

Apple's 4-to-1 stock split would have reduced the Dow's weighting of technology stocks to 20.3 percent from 27.6 percent. Adding Salesforce boosts technology to about 23 percent.

There are no hard and fast rules for a company to be included as one of thMe 30 companies in the august index.

But to be included, a company must generate significant economic activity in the US, must be a major company in its sector and must be listed on Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange.

In March 2015, Apple replaced AT&T in the Dow. In September 2017, DowDuPont replaced DuPont following the merger of Dow Chemical and Dupont.

In July 2018, Walgreens replaced General Electric, the last of the original Dow stocks.

With Exxon's removal from the DJIA on Monday, energy will account for about 2 percent of the index. Chevron is the only oil company remaining in the average.

"It's pretty symbolic," said Stewart Glickman, energy analyst at CFRA Research. "It's a recognition that the energy sector doesn't have anywhere near the same clout it used to."

In a statement, Exxon said: "This action does not affect our business nor the long-term fundamentals that support our strategy. Our portfolio is the strongest it has been in more than two decades, and our focus remains on creating shareholder value by responsibly meeting the world's energy needs."

The price of oil plunged during the coronavirus pandemic and briefly turned negative as demand for transportation, especially air travel, fell.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite notched records again Tuesday, as investors cheered trade talks among US and Chinese officials following weeks of escalating tensions between the world's two largest economies.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 60.02 points, or 0.2 percent, to 28,248.44. The S&P 500 added 12.34 points, or 0.4 percent, to 3443.62, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 86.75 points, or 0.8 percent, to 11,466.47.

Investors responded favorably as China and the US reported having a positive phone call overnight about implementing phase one of their trade agreement signed in January.

A videoconference late Monday brought together US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He for a formal review of the deal.